Simulation-based learning in a virtual environment allows students to learn by interacting with objects provided in a 3-D graphical visualization on a computer display, or a head-mounted display (e.g., a virtual reality (VR) headset, augmented reality (AR) headset, or the like). An Immersive Virtual Environment (IVE) is a type of virtual environment with an instructional focus that can allow students to learn via procedure-driven large-scale game-based training, and can further evaluate performance based interaction with the virtual environment. IVE-based learning is becoming increasingly popular in various applications, such as military, commercial, or industrial applications where, for example, students interact with expensive and specialized equipment or vehicles (e.g., airplanes, ships, and the like) that may not be easily accessible for training purposes.
Creating such virtual environments for IVE-based learning, however, can be highly time-consuming and expensive. This is due, at least in part, to the fact that many different tools may be used by many different users during the production process to gather information regarding various objects in the IVE, create simulation models that accurately reflect an object's different states and behavior, indicate how different objects in the IVE interact, create a “script” for the simulation to follow in order to meet various instructional criteria, and so forth. Moreover, often times it takes technical expertise to successfully utilize these tools to create an IVE.